For many small business owners, cash flow problems feel like a financial puzzle that’s impossible to figure out. It’s a numbers game that puts us at the mercy of the markets, and our clients’ payment terms. But what if the real issue isn’t the figures? When it comes down to it, cash flow issues have a lot more to do with our behavioural patterns than we sometimes believe.

Ask any business analyst about recurring cash flow challenges and you’ll often hear them say, “It’s not that the business is short of money, it’s that money arrives too late or not at all.” Behind every late payment sits a human choice: a decision to delay invoicing, skip a follow-up call or assume a client will “get around to it.” These decisions aren’t random; they reflect habits and beliefs about confrontation, courtesy, and priorities. Over time, the cost of these habits shows up in your bank account, your stress levels, and your ability to invest in growth. Changing your behaviours can change your cash flow trajectory. Here’s a breakdown of the common behavioural issues that silently undermine cash flow:

1. Delaying invoicing
   Waiting until the end of the week, month, or project to send invoices feels courteous, especially when you want to avoid awkwardness. But every day you delay is a day your cash is “on credit.” By simply issuing invoices immediately upon delivery of goods or services, you can cut your payment cycle dramatically.
   
   
2. Avoiding follow-ups
   Being “nice” and hoping clients remember to pay without prompting is one of the costliest behaviours in business. Assuming people will act without a reminder is sheer optimism. Don’t be afraid to send a polite reminder.
   
   
3. Not wanting to appear pushy
   Many business owners avoid stating payment terms clearly because they don’t want to seem pushy. But it’s very possible to be both polite and firm. Clear, upfront terms eliminate confusion and reduce disputes later.
   
   
4. Letting “good relationships” override Ts & Cs
   Being flexible with payment deadlines to keep clients happy can feel like relationship building – until you realise it’s subsidising someone else’s cash flow and squeezing yours. It also sets false precedents, erodes your negotiating power and, critically, impacts your ability to pay your own bills.
   
   
5. Underestimating your own time
   When you don’t value your time with firm payment terms, clients often reflect that same lack of value back to you. Whether they’re acting intentionally or not, studies have shown that how you behave signals what you expect in return.
   
   
6. Not using professional support
   Your accountant can be an invaluable asset when it comes to cash flow. An accountant can help you design invoicing systems, analyse payment patterns, and implement tools that automate reminders. This takes the emotion out of follow-ups and frees you up to focus on your craft. Talk to your accountant about structured invoicing systems and cash-flow forecasting reminders.
   
   
7. Ignoring the feedback loop
   If clients consistently pay late, it’s a signal, not a personal slight. Asking why payment is late reveals patterns in your process, communication or terms that you can improve. Avoiding the conversation keeps you stuck in the same cycle.
   
   
8. Fearing financial conversations
   A lack of confidence when talking about money breeds avoidance. Money conversations are uncomfortable, yes, but they build clarity and trust when done with professionalism.

New behaviour = Better cash flow

Now that you’ve identified the challenges, here’s what you can do about them.

1. Set clear, consistent terms
   Agree payment terms upfront and stick to them. A signed agreement reduces ambiguity and gives you a basis for professional follow-ups.
   
   
2. Automate where possible
   Use tools for billing and reminders. Automation removes the emotional resistance to chasing payments and keeps your business running smoothly.
   
   
3. Train your team
   If you have staff, ensure that everyone knows how to request, follow up on and record payments. It’s vital that you’re all singing from the same hymn sheet.
   
   
4. Track metrics – and adjust
   Ask your accountant to help you set up key performance indicators (KPIs) for cash flow, such as average days to pay, overdue ratios, and client payment patterns. Once you know what the problems are, you can take steps to fix them. If you’re only going to track one metric, make it the “cash conversion cycle” which measures, in days, how long it takes you to convert resources into cash flow. The lower the number, the better.

Budget 2026 has brought long-overdue relief to taxpayers by not imposing VAT or income tax hikes and by adjusting the tables for tax rates, rebates and credits for inflation. Of course, some tax hikes were always going to happen: inflation-linked increases on sin taxes took effect on 25 February already and the fuel levies also increased. This selection of official SARS Tax Tables and other useful resources will help clarify your tax position for the new tax year. Then follow the link to Fin 24’s Budget Calculator (just follow the four-step process) to do your own calculation.

Taxpayers will enjoy long-awaited tax relief with much good news contained in the 2026 Budget. 

It scrapped the previously announced R20 billion in tax increases, and instead provides relief for taxpayers, assists small businesses and encourages savings by adjusting various tax brackets, caps and limits. There is also real optimism about the country’s economic growth prospects. So much so that Budget 2026 has been called a fiscal turning point for SA, as important milestones are achieved. Read more good news from the Budget here…

Some of the best news in Budget 2026 is the real GDP growth of an estimated 1.4% for 2025, rising to 2% in 2028, and a debt ratio that will stabilise during this financial year and decline thereafter. Inflation also declined to 3.2% in 2025 (from 4.4% in 2024), improving affordability for households and keeping interest rates down. At the same time, growth-enhancing reforms have progressed and confidence in South Africa’s fiscal outlook has improved, enabling a sovereign ratings upgrade and lower borrowing costs.

No income tax or VAT increases

Against this backdrop, government has withdrawn the R20 billion tax increases it had planned for this budget and instead proposes inflationary relief for taxpayers.  This means no increase in VAT and no increase in income tax for individual or corporate taxpayers.

Inflationary relief, finally

After two years with no inflationary relief, personal income tax brackets and medical tax credits are fully adjusted for inflation. The tax threshold for individuals below age 65 is now R99 000, and medical tax credits will increase from R364 to R376 for the first two members, and from R246 to R254 for additional members. Bottom line: taxpayers will keep more of their income in real terms than in the previous two years. In addition, limits, rebates and duties are also inflation-adjusted for contributions to tax-free investments, the retirement funds deduction cap and capital gains tax (CGT) exclusions. An increase in the annual tax-free savings account contribution limit to R46 000 (from R36 000) and the limit to retirement fund deductions from R350 000 to R430 000, are encouraging South Africans to save more. 

Capital gains tax limits

The Budget also proposes increasing the annual exclusion on capital gains tax from R40 000 to R50 000 for individuals and special trusts, and the annual exclusion for individuals in the year of death from R300 000 to R440 000. The exclusion that applies on the disposal of a primary residence will increase from R2 million to R3 million. Very good news for anyone planning on selling their home.

Corporate tax

The corporate tax rate remains unchanged at 27%. The global minimum tax rules will be implemented in 2026/27, a move expected to raise around R2 billion (down from an earlier estimate of R8 billion) by reducing profit shifting by multinationals. More good news for businesses, especially small companies, is the increase in the VAT registration threshold to R2.3 million (previously R1 million), effective from 1 April 2026. In addition, asset disposals by small businesses of as much as R15 million will be exempt from capital gains tax, a 50% increase on the current limit. The annual turnover limit for turnover tax is also adjusted for inflation (from R1 million to R2.3 million). In addition, the restriction on tax year end dates will be removed to make the turnover tax regime more attractive. A proposed review of the urban development zone tax incentive will explore better support for affordable housing developments in urban areas.

Sin taxes & fuel

Alcohol, tobacco, and vaping excise duties already increased in line with inflation (3.4%), effective 25 February. Under consideration is a national online gambling tax, proposed at 20% on gross revenue, for further consultation during 2026. The customs and excise levies on fuel remain unchanged but fuel levies have increased, with the general, Road Accident Fund and carbon tax levies up for both petrol and diesel from 1 April.

Other tax proposals

Local investors diversifying offshore will appreciate the increase in the single discretionary allowance (SDA) for individuals from R1 million to R2 million per calendar year. The Budget also proposes that investment returns generated by regular collective investment schemes (CIS) and retail investment hedge funds be taxed as capital, to encourage savings and to provide the industry with tax certainty.

Diversification is treated as a business virtue so unquestioned it borders on dogma. Expand the product line. Enter new markets. Hedge every risk. Spread exposure everywhere. Yet for many entrepreneurs, diversification may actually bring more risk than it solves.  We examine whether more really is safer, and explore why simplicity, not spread, is often the real competitive advantage. Diversification makes perfect investment sense – but it doesn’t always make business sense.

Diversification makes intuitive sense. When one revenue stream falters, another should compensate. When one market cools, another heats up. In theory, it’s prudent. In reality, however, as businesses accumulate products, geographies, customer segments and internal processes, decision-making slows and execution weakens. What began as risk management turns into managerial overload. The uncomfortable truth is that sometimes executing fewer things extraordinarily well, for longer than competitors can tolerate, is sometimes the path to true success.  Whether you’re selling koeksisters from your garage or leading a multinational tech behemoth, the ten pointers below are worth taking note of.

Diversification feels safer than it actually is

Diversification offers psychological comfort. It gives leaders the sense that they are “covered” from uncertainty. But safety in theory is not safety in execution. Each new product, market or channel introduces its own operational demands, regulatory requirements, customer expectations and failure points. Risk doesn’t disappear, it fragments. Instead of managing one or two critical risks deeply, leadership is forced to shallowly monitor many. The illusion of safety often masks a rise in systemic fragility.

Complexity is a hidden tax on performance

Every additional business line adds meetings, reporting layers, decision pathways and coordination costs. These costs rarely appear cleanly on an income statement, but they erode margins all the same. Management attention becomes diluted. Strategic conversations shift from “How do we win?” to “How do we keep everything from breaking?”

Focus is a force multiplier

Focused companies learn faster. They serve customers better because feedback loops are tight and clear. When something goes wrong, causes are easier to identify and fix. When something goes right, it can be scaled with confidence. Diversified organisations often struggle to replicate this clarity. Success in one unit is obscured by mediocrity in others. Focus doesn’t just improve execution, it sharpens strategic judgment.

Diversification often masks unresolved core weaknesses

One of the most under-discussed drivers of diversification is discomfort. When growth slows in the core business, expanding outwards can feel more exciting than fixing what’s broken. Unresolved issues, weak unit economics, unclear positioning, operational inefficiencies … These things don’t vanish when you diversify, they multiply to new areas. The same leadership blind spots and process failures are often replicated across a wider footprint. If you’re wondering whether diversification might be hurting you, feel free to ask for our input – sometimes a fresh perspective is all it takes.

Operational excellence doesn’t scale sideways

What works brilliantly in one context rarely translates seamlessly into another. Different customer segments require different value propositions. Different geographies demand different logistics, pricing structures and cultural understanding. Founders often underestimate how bespoke excellence truly is. Horizontal expansion assumes transferable competence – but in reality, each new area requires its own learning curve. The result can be a portfolio of businesses that are all “good enough,” but none exceptional.

Small and fast – Or big and slow?

Speed is one of the greatest advantages of entrepreneurial organisations. Diversification erodes it. As organisations grow broader, decisions require more stakeholders, more data reconciliation and more compromise. What once took days now takes weeks. Opportunities expire while you’re trying to coordinate a Teams meeting to discuss them. In fast-moving markets, this loss of velocity can be fatal. Competitors with narrower focus can outmanoeuvre diversified incumbents simply by deciding, and acting, faster.

Diversification can dilute brand meaning

Strong brands stand for something specific. They occupy a clear mental position in the customer’s mind. Diversification blurs that signal. Customers struggle to understand what the company truly excels at. Is it premium or mass? Specialist or generalist? Innovative or reliable? When brand meaning weakens, pricing power follows. What was once differentiation becomes confusion – and confusion is rarely profitable.

The most resilient businesses often look concentrated, not diversified

History is filled with companies that endured precisely because they stayed narrow. They dominated niches, controlled quality obsessively and reinvested relentlessly into their core advantage. Their resilience came not from spread, but rather from deep customer relationships, deep expertise and deep operational mastery. Concentration allowed them to absorb shocks because their fundamentals were strong, not because they were hedged.

Simplicity is not stagnation

Rejecting diversification does not mean rejecting growth. It means choosing growth paths that reinforce the core rather than distract from it. Vertical integration, geographic expansion of a proven model, or deeper penetration of the same customer segment can all drive scale without overwhelming complexity.

As we approach the end of the tax year, now is an ideal time to make a few strategic adjustments that can strengthen your financial position.  These steps are simple, high-impact, and designed to help you make the most of the tax incentives available to South Africans.  Read on to make sure you end the tax year right.

1. Boost your retirement savings

Contributing to a Retirement Annuity (RA) before 28 February can reduce your taxable income and grow your long-term wealth. If you haven’t maximised your annual tax deduction for contributions to retirement funds, this is a good moment to review it. Got any questions – ask us.

2. Top up your Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA)

Each member of your family (even minor children) can have a TFSA and you can contribute up to R36,000 per year to each account. Interest and dividends paid from and capital growth inside a TFSA are completely tax-free, making it one of the most powerful long-term investment tools available.

3. Consider making a section 18A donation

Donations to qualifying Public Benefit Organisations (PBOs) and some other donees that are approved to issue section 18A receipts, are tax-deductible (up to 10% of taxable income). If you’re planning to give, now is a good time to do so.

4. Review your investment gains and losses

If you’ve realised capital gains this year, you may be able to offset them by realising losses on underperforming investments. This is known as “tax‑loss harvesting” and can help reduce your capital gains tax. If you’re unsure if this applies to you, we can definitely assist. There is also a CGT exclusion (up to R2 million in gains) on the sale of your primary residence so the timing of your house sale may have big tax implications (positive or negative).

5. Check your interest income

South Africans enjoy an annual local interest exemption of R23 800 (R34 500 for individuals 65 or older). If your interest income is close to or above the threshold, it may be worth reviewing where your cash is held and whether a more tax-efficient structure makes sense. Our advice here could be crucial.

6. Gather all your Tax Certificates

Make sure you have the necessary documents from your investment platforms, including:

• Interest and dividend statements
• Capital gains summaries
• RA and TFSA contribution reports

These will make your tax return smoother and help avoid SARS mismatches.

7. Review medical and other allowable expenses

If you’ve had out-of-pocket medical costs or other deductible expenses, gather those records now so they’re ready for your return.

8. Provisional taxpayers: Double‑check your estimate

If you’re a provisional taxpayer, your second payment is due at the end of February. Ensuring your estimate is accurate can help you avoid penalties later.

Business culture is obsessed with speed. In a world where motion, and constant optimisation is the dream, doing nothing can look like failure.  Entrepreneurs, CEOs and other leaders are praised for quick decision making, rapid iteration, and relentless action, yet many of the highest performers quietly practise the opposite at critical moments. They pause. They wait. They refuse to react. Strategic inaction is often one of the most disciplined and profitable decisions a business leader can make.

In a world where constant activity is seen as progress, the real high-performing leaders are doing something different. These entrepreneurs, CEOs and founders understand that not every signal deserves a response, not every problem requires an immediate solution, and not every opportunity is worth pursuing. In volatile markets, noisy feedback loops and emotionally charged leadership environments, doing nothing can be the hardest and smartest move you’ll ever make. Here’s why.

You don’t make decisions with insufficient information

If the data is weak, contradictory, or incomplete, action often locks in the wrong conclusion. High-performing founders pause to gather better inputs, test assumptions, or wait for the environment to stabilise. Acting early may feel decisive, but it increases the chances of rework and wasted capital. Don’t hesitate to consult with your accountant, or other experts while you wait to ensure all data is as complete as possible before acting.

You avoid solving problems that aren’t real yet

Many issues in start-ups resolve on their own: customer complaints from edge cases, short-term revenue dips, internal friction during growth… Founders who intervene too early often create processes, complexity, or cost for problems that would have disappeared organically. Strategic inaction prevents over-engineering.

You delay irreversible decisions

Hiring senior executives, firing key staff, pivoting your business model, or entering long-term contracts are all hard to undo. High-performing founders deliberately slow these decisions. Waiting allows emotions to settle and consequences to become clearer. Speed matters, but not when mistakes are expensive.

You prevent emotional decision-making

Founders are most likely to act badly when under stress. Losing a client, missing a target, or facing criticism is guaranteed to heighten feelings. Strategic inaction creates distance between the stimulus and the response. This reduces decisions driven by fear, ego, or the need to appear in control.

You let existing systems run before changing them

When something underperforms, the instinct is to intervene. You would be better off first asking whether the system has had enough time to work. Premature changes make it impossible to know what is actually effective. Doing nothing (for a while) is often the fastest way to learn.

You conserve focus and organisational capacity

Every new initiative pulls attention away from existing priorities. Try to recognise that your company’s capacity is limited. By choosing not to act, you will protect delivery on what already matters. This is especially important as teams scale and coordination costs increase.

You use time as a risk-management tool

Waiting can reduce uncertainty. Competitors reveal their strategies. Markets clarify. Customer behaviour becomes more predictable. Strategic inaction is often about allowing risk to resolve itself before committing resources.

The second provisional tax deadline for the 2026 financial year is just days away on 27 February 2026. This is an important and tricky deadline, because this second provisional tax estimate must be quite accurate (within 80–90% of actual taxable income) to avoid SARS’ stiff under-estimation penalty. Find out how we can help you to meet this important deadline with the highest accuracy.

Provisional tax is among the most confusing aspects of the tax regime – and it’s also the most heavily penalised. There are numerous declarations and payments overlapping throughout each year, not to mention a raft of rules and exceptions.  The next provisional tax deadline for the 2026 tax year (coming up on 27 February 2026) is also the trickiest and most important provisional tax deadline of the year. This is because the income estimates declared must be highly accurate. A stiff 20% under-estimation penalty can apply if the declared income estimate doesn’t fall within 80–90% of the actual taxable income. Our professional assistance is your ticket to avoiding non-compliance and stiff penalties.

Must you pay provisional tax?

• Companies are automatically provisional taxpayers.
• Individuals who receive income other than a salary may also be provisional taxpayers, depending on various criteria. This includes sole proprietors and may include members of CCs and company shareholders / directors that earn income not fully subject to PAYE. SARS places the onus on you to determine if you are liable for provisional tax, so it’s best to check your status with us if in any doubt.
• Other taxpayers include trusts and any person notified by the SARS Commissioner. Exceptions and thresholds apply in every instance, so be sure to verify with our team of tax professionals.

What is provisional tax?

Provisional tax is not a type of tax, but rather a way of paying an annual income tax liability in two or three payments during a tax year. This prevents taxpayers from facing one large tax bill at year-end when the annual personal income tax (PIT) return or corporate income tax (CIT) return is filed.

Making provisional tax payments allows you to spread the tax liability across the year. But it also creates additional administrative obligations (calculations, returns), and increases the risk of penalties – particularly under-estimation penalties.

Three provisional tax payments each year

The following rules apply to individuals and to companies / trusts with a year of assessment running from 1 March to 28 February:

• First payment: Due within six months of the start of the year of assessment. For the 2026 year (which commenced on 1 March 2025), this was due end August 2025. This forward-looking payment is based on half of the total estimated tax for the full year, less employees’ tax already paid and any applicable tax credits and rebates.
• Second payment (due 27 February 2026): This is retrospective and based on the total estimated tax for the full tax year, less provisional tax and employees’ tax already paid in the first period, and any applicable tax credits and rebates. The rules are far stricter with harsh penalties for under-estimating.
• Third payment (optional): Can be made after the end of the tax year but before the issuing of the annual income tax assessment by SARS each year, typically by 30 September.

Bear in mind that SARS can ask for your estimate to be justified, so you’ll need accurate records of all source documents and calculations used. SARS can even increase the estimate if they’re dissatisfied with your amount, and this is not subject to objection or appeal.

Further penalties to watch out for

• Late filing: If an IRP6 is filed more than four months after the deadline, SARS will consider a ‘nil’ return to have been submitted. Unless actual taxable income really was zero, an under-estimation penalty will also apply.
• Interest charges: Interest will be levied on underpayment of provisional tax resulting from under-estimation.
• Late payment penalty: Not making provisional tax payments on time will result in an immediate 10% penalty, regardless of whether it’s not paid at all or simply paid late.

Price changes are part of running a business at this time of the year, and generally one of the first things business owners consider when they return to the office. Many owners, however, still treat increases as a last resort and/or fear making them – even when rising costs make them unavoidable. Here are our tips for increasing prices in the most effective (and least disruptive) way.

Costs go up and so do prices. And yet most businesses raise prices later than they should. A global study by Simon-Kucher found that less than a quarter of companies adjust prices multiple times a year as needed, with almost 30% discussing price changes only once annually, and 26% waiting for new customer tenders or contract expirations. By the time owners take action, margins are stressed and the communication feels rushed. This is unfortunate, because studies show that a thoughtful considered, and timeous approach is the difference between a customer accepting a change and walking away.

“We’ll lose customers if we raise prices”
This fear is common, but it’s not grounded in the research. Studies from the Harvard Business Review note that when customers leave after a price change, it’s usually because the business has stayed quiet about the reason. Silence erodes trust. People assume the worst, even when the increase is modest. The same study revealed that most customers accept changes if they still see value and understand why the adjustment exists. Communication is key. Your customers should know what costs shifted and what value you’ve added. Keep the message simple enough that a customer could repeat it back without confusion.

“Customers won’t care about the reason”
Owners often assume customers ignore explanations. Evidence says the opposite. Research from McKinsey & Company found that when companies explain the drivers behind price changes, such as rising input costs or service improvements, customer trust remains stable, even when the increase is noticeable. People don’t need all the details, but they definitely do want you to add context. A short, fact-based explanation helps them understand that the decision wasn’t arbitrary or simply based on greed.

“If we apologise enough, customers will be less upset”
For many owners the first inclination is to apologise to the customer for the added pressure the price changes will have on their lives. Trying to soften the blow with an apology frames the price change as a mistake rather than a strategic choice. Customers may wonder whether the change is temporary or negotiable, thereby weakening your position. This is all backed up by researchers writing in the Journal of Service Research who note that apologies work best when something has gone wrong. You can acknowledge the impact on customers without presenting the change as an error. Aim for respectful, not remorseful.

“We should wait until the last minute to avoid backlash”
Delaying the announcement doesn’t reduce resistance, it magnifies it. Short notice announcements leave customers scrambling. If the increases catch them off guard this can lead to resentment – something that’s far more likely to lead them to change supplier than the price change itself. Giving your customers timely notice shows that you respect their planning and cash flow. You should aim to communicate price increases as early as possible. Even a few weeks’ notice can make the shift easier. Use one message delivered consistently across email, invoices, signage, and your website so there’s no confusion.

“Once we announce the increase, the conversation is over”
Many businesses make their price announcement and stop there. Whether from fear of pushback or simply a desire to not discuss it, their refusal to discuss the price changes with customers can often lead to unanswered questions, and confusion, leaving space for assumptions to grow. Studies from Gartner highlight that businesses with strong post-announcement engagement retain more clients than those who treat the update as a one-way message. You should always be prepared for questions. Have a short script or FAQ ready. Make sure your team is aligned so they answer consistently. A calm explanation helps people adjust without feeling ignored.

“The only way to justify an increase is by adding new features”
Price increases don’t always need to come with updates or added features. Often they simply reflect the realities of the economy. Businesses that fail to keep pace eventually struggle to maintain service quality and people understand that. This does not mean that you shouldn’t tell customers when price changes are related to improved offerings. Telling customers about upgrades gives them something concrete to weigh against the higher price. Under-explaining value is as harmful as over-explaining it.

“A single announcement will do”
People miss emails. They skim invoices. They forget dates. A single notice is rarely enough, even when well written. When a message is clear and consistent, customers don’t feel overwhelmed. Using multiple channels for communication has been shown to reduce complaints because no one feels blindsided. You should always aim to send your message through two or three channels, spaced out over time. Keep each version short and factual and make sure they each reflect the same message. Clarity prevents conflict.